-by El Gitano Peñasco, "The Peñasco Gypsy"
I just read a news story in an online Texas-based news service for KVUE that starts with what seems to be a positive theme with their headline announcing “Americans still traveling to Mexico”. But from there it is downhill, with the bold font title ending with “despite warnings”.
The less than informative news piece was ultimately about Peñasco and consisted of about 250 words, including a favorable quote from Tucson, AZ resident Christine Shea (who owns a home here). But then the writer starts using words such as “afraid”, “drugs”, “violence”, “dangerous”, “government warned travelers”, “suspicious illegal checkpoints”, “gunman shot the police chief”, “local economy dying”.
And then, as if that wasn’t negative enough, the story ends by informing readers that: “A total of 109 U.S. citizens were murdered in Mexico last year. The vast majority were in regions coping with drug violence, not resorts.”
As we all know there is no shortage of pessimistic news in the ‘press’ about Mexico and occasionally there are less than flattering or pleasant ‘stories’ about Peñasco too. And quite frankly people do need to be informed even when the news is gruesome. But those types of events, happening here, are as unlikely as a new housing boom beginning tomorrow, yet the negative ‘image’ and perception dominates the media.
There are, of course, well meaning Peñasco blogs, websites and/or individuals who are disseminating positive information about events here but those are usually of a ‘commercial’ nature and the ratio of those ‘announcements’, IMHO, is mostly too little and too seldom!
It seems however that the National (and regional) Mexican news sources do a better job keeping their readers informed about this region and do so in a more positive light but as far as the ‘Gringo’ market goes, the image of ‘fear’ and being ‘slaughtered’ etc. while in Mexico (and Peñasco) seems to be the preferred topic of the day.
Thus, to wit and therefore and also too then, I hereby am calling for someone to be a PR (Public Relations) Czar Por Peñasco whose sole function is to write up and distribute positive reports on a weekly basis promoting this wonderful sea-side community. And if anyone is up to the challenge let us know and we’ll do our best to support you (that PR Czar) and this desperately needed ‘marketing’ effort!
A Gypsy can always dream!
¡Viva Puerto Peñasco y México!
Gypsy
elgitanopenasco@gmail.com
